spring flowers and good food

[Sheilajeanne]

Darren, I've seen a few episodes of Star Trek where they resorted to using Morse when other methods of communication were down or being blocked by an enemy!  

 

Chuck, are you talking about gas furnaces in general? Or just the newer ones? This is the first time I've had a problem with them, and I've lived in quite a few houses that had gas furnaces.

One thing I do hate are those modern thermostats, you know, the energy efficient ones where you can program them to set the temperature back at night? The one I had in my previous house was run by a battery. When the battery dies, guess what? The furnace shuts off!   

I do like to set the thermostat back at night, but with this particular piece of junk, you had to press a button numerous times to get it to the number of degrees you wanted. And pressing the button didn't always work - sometimes the temperature would change, sometimes it wouldn't. Plus, I had to be wearing my glasses in order to read it. As I kept irregular hours, I didn't WANT the thermostat to set the temperature back automatically - I much preferred to do it myself, so resetting it was a nightly thing.

That house had a leaky basement in the spring, and the sump pump didn't always kick in when it flooded. It was a very old house, well over 100 years old. You had to access the basement by a trap door and a very uneven set of steps. You also had to remember to duck your head to avoid the support beams as you descended. Needless to say, I didn't visit the basement very often, which is why the fan got wet and died.

Anyway, when the furnace fan had to be replaced, I asked the  repair man to replace the thermostat with an old analog model, where it took just a nudge on the temperature setting lever to move the needle to the desired spot. And I was able to read the damn dial WITHOUT my glasses!!   

This is what the access to the basement stairs looked like. There were actually two trap doors, a big one and a small one. To the left of the stairs is a shelf which was used for storing all sorts stuff (glue bottle, box of floor tiles, kitchen pots and pans that were rarely used, etc.)  

And this is what the outside of the house looked like. They called it 'the Owl House, due to the round windows! 

I really hate what the new owner has done. He removed the lovely antique stained glass transoms that were above the front door and the front window and replaced them with plain glass. He also removed the 'widow's walk' (mini balcony) that many of these old houses have. The house didn't have AC, so I would leave that door open in the summer to get better air circulation. (Yes, it had a screen door to keep the bugs out.)

He also wanted to cut down the beautiful maple tree that was on the front lawn! Fortunately, the tree is on township property, so he couldn't touch it!  In addition to turning a beautiful colour in the fall, it also helped to keep the house cool in the summer!

 

 

 

 

Edited Monday at 07:27 PM by Sheilajeanne

[Darren8306]

I purchased the electronic thermostat we currently use, and set it to a schedule, then forgot how it worked completely. 

Rarely, I'll go override it for some reason. It seems to go right back to it's program.

We have pretty predictable temperatures here though. Maybe it makes it easy.

[Sheilajeanne]

FURNACE IS FIXED!!

I e-mailed my furnace guy this morning, and he got back to me and asked if I'd be home late in the day. He came at 5:30 and was there until 7, as it turned out the problem wasn't as simple as just replacing the pressure switch.

He says water got into the furnace at some point and damaged the circuit board, so the second stage of the burner doesn't work. But at least now the temperature in the house is the same as the temperature the thermostat is set at! SO nice to be warm!

I imagine the circuit board is going to need replacing, plus there's a strong mouldy smell in the air that is coming from the furnace, so we're not quite out of the woods yet! 

[chuck123wapati]

On 2/10/2026 at 12:30 AM, Sheilajeanne said:

FURNACE IS FIXED!!

I e-mailed my furnace guy this morning, and he got back to me and asked if I'd be home late in the day. He came at 5:30 and was there until 7, as it turned out the problem wasn't as simple as just replacing the pressure switch.

He says water got into the furnace at some point and damaged the circuit board, so the second stage of the burner doesn't work. But at least now the temperature in the house is the same as the temperature the thermostat is set at! SO nice to be warm!

I imagine the circuit board is going to need replacing, plus there's a strong mouldy smell in the air that is coming from the furnace, so we're not quite out of the woods yet! 

I hope you are doing well and he gets you fixed up. Yeah, there are things in the world that don't need electronics or computer programming to work or to be safe. Hot water heaters and furnaces are at the top of the list IMO. I've worked on everything from home boiler systems in residential to 750 hp coal-fired boilers heating a complete penitentiary. I've been trained inside out and upside down on carbon monoxide safety, and there are ways to do the job just as safely without the complicated BS..

OH and yeah Those old round thermostats you just turn to the temp you want is all anyone ever wanted.  Why all the extra programming crap when everyone in the world knows no one uses it because it's a PITA? oh dont get me started lol...

[Handstitched]

@chuck123wapati  all foreign  territory  to me reading those  posts, but sounds expensive, but I have to remember  how incredibly  cold it gets over there  I have a solar hot water system on the roof.   Nothing  technical,  just a booster switch  for the winter months, but the water in our town can be quite salty and high in calcium,  so the brass fittings pressure valves etc  and element , and the tank  corrode resulting  in periodic ex$y replacements. Our local plumber gets plenty of work 😆 Needless to say  i never drink the tap water unless it's boiled,and bottled water is very  popular. 

Keep warm 

HS

[Darren8306]

My friend just got into the 3d printing hobby. The other day, it was his birthday. In true hobbit fashion, he gave me gifts.

several animal stamps, 3d printed with carbon fiber plastic.

When I tried the previous stamps, a texture from the printing became visible after finishing. This time I sanded it a bit and got rid of that.

So now stamp production is so cheap, it almost isn't worth considering buying a metal stamp for these.

He has also made some rollers, which are for impressions on clay, which is a hobby his sweetheart loves. (I sense some motivated learning there)

If you want a stamp, it is now shockingly inexpensive and easy to have. I may devise a durability test, but the one I tried last went over a dozen uses with no visible wear.

[Sheilajeanne]

What a lovely gift, Darren! And glad to know we have another LOTR fan here!  

 

From the sound of it, Chuck, the pressure switch not working was causing condensation to back up in the drain, and that could be why the circuit board got damaged. Anyway, even if the second stage burner isn't kicking in, I'm still nice and toasty again.

Another problem was although the furnace is only 3 years old, the AC system is ancient. The condenser coils were mucked up with dust, dirt and pet hair, and he said this was also causing back-pressure on the system. He took a brush to them, and that's when I started noticing the mouldy smell. Sooo, this is where things might get really expensive. The condenser coils may need replacing. And on an AC this old, that might not be possible. The AC is running on freon, which is no longer legal, and there will be a hefty environmental fee for disposing of it, in addition to the cost of a new system. I'm probably looking at $5,000 if that happens. But hey, AC season is quite a few months down the road still. Going to cross that bridge when we come to it!

I miss the hot water radiator system our house had when I was a kid. I'm allergic to house dust, and every year when I have to turn the heat on, my allergies go nuts.   I had the ducts cleaned when the new furnace was put in, but it didn't help at all. With the old rads, you didn't have that problem, plus they were a great place for drying wet socks and mitts! Older, simpler times... When I was really young, Dad  had our furnace converted from coal to oil. I still remember the wooden partitions on the basement floor that held the coal after they shovelled it through a window in the furnace room. I also remember looking into the furnace and seeing the red fire of the burning coal. 

[chuck123wapati]

11 hours ago, Sheilajeanne said:

What a lovely gift, Darren! And glad to know we have another LOTR fan here!  

 

From the sound of it, Chuck, the pressure switch not working was causing condensation to back up in the drain, and that could be why the circuit board got damaged. Anyway, even if the second stage burner isn't kicking in, I'm still nice and toasty again.

Another problem was although the furnace is only 3 years old, the AC system is ancient. The condenser coils were mucked up with dust, dirt and pet hair, and he said this was also causing back-pressure on the system. He took a brush to them, and that's when I started noticing the mouldy smell. Sooo, this is where things might get really expensive. The condenser coils may need replacing. And on an AC this old, that might not be possible. The AC is running on freon, which is no longer legal, and there will be a hefty environmental fee for disposing of it, in addition to the cost of a new system. I'm probably looking at $5,000 if that happens. But hey, AC season is quite a few months down the road still. Going to cross that bridge when we come to it!

I miss the hot water radiator system our house had when I was a kid. I'm allergic to house dust, and every year when I have to turn the heat on, my allergies go nuts.   I had the ducts cleaned when the new furnace was put in, but it didn't help at all. With the old rads, you didn't have that problem, plus they were a great place for drying wet socks and mitts! Older, simpler times... When I was really young, Dad  had our furnace converted from coal to oil. I still remember the wooden partitions on the basement floor that held the coal after they shovelled it through a window in the furnace room. I also remember looking into the furnace and seeing the red fire of the burning coal. 

I'm glad you're warm and safe. They can clean those condensers, so if it's still a sealed and working system, there would be no need to replace it. What sucks and i dont know about Canada, but here, a heating tech can red tag your heating system and pretty much make you replace it. I'm lucky that I have the knowledge to keep mine up and running lol its old but in good shape still, I keep some spare parts. 

There has been very little snow this winter to catch the dust, so the winds here are just killing us. My sinuses and head haven't felt good for months.  Usually, the snow drifts at this time of year are hard to tell from piles of dirt they get so covered with dust, now its just blowing around. My house is so drafty i can tell the wind direction from which end of the house is warmest lol.

[chuck123wapati]

On 2/12/2026 at 8:20 PM, Darren8306 said:

My friend just got into the 3d printing hobby. The other day, it was his birthday. In true hobbit fashion, he gave me gifts.

several animal stamps, 3d printed with carbon fiber plastic.

When I tried the previous stamps, a texture from the printing became visible after finishing. This time I sanded it a bit and got rid of that.

So now stamp production is so cheap, it almost isn't worth considering buying a metal stamp for these.

He has also made some rollers, which are for impressions on clay, which is a hobby his sweetheart loves. (I sense some motivated learning there)

If you want a stamp, it is now shockingly inexpensive and easy to have. I may devise a durability test, but the one I tried last went over a dozen uses with no visible wear.

Very cool, I've seen some folks using them, it's a dandy idea, especially for logos and such.

[Darren8306]

11 hours ago, Sheilajeanne said:

I had the ducts cleaned when the new furnace was put in, but it didn't help at all.

Some people do an inattentive job. I don't want to accuse your fine tradesemen, but if I were stuck doing it...

I would examine the ducts, and plan my attack. Generally, attaching a truck-vacuum to pull from where the main fan was (I move it aside)

Then, I take a specialty tool, and go attack the ducts from the opposite ends.

Starting at the furthest end, the air-skipper goes in, and skips around knocking dust loose until satisfactory. This is repeated at every vent, from furthest to closest. Then, a small hole is punched into the bigger ducts, to allow more access for the skipper.

 

There are a few versions of the skipper, but the important thing is, if they didn't go to the far ends of the ducts with such a tool, then they didn't get as much dust out as they could have.

 

In the end though, it may not have outpaced your sensitivities anyway.

 

Stay warm!